Texas AG Ken Paxton’s lawyers attack evidence in impeachment case; Trump weighs in
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawyers began their defense Thursday in his Senate trial, calling witnesses to try to cast doubt on the evidence included in the articles of impeachment.
Former President Donald Trump has also weighed in on the historic proceedings, coming to Paxton’s defense in a post on social media, which Paxton then used in a fundraising post of his own.
The trial could be nearing its conclusion as early as Friday or potentially this weekend, as the senators who will decide Paxton’s fate do not intend to take a break. Paxton’s attorneys announced they were resting their case around 5:30 p.m. Thursday. Closing arguments are expected Friday.
The third-term attorney general is accused of abusing his office to benefit political donor and real estate investor, Nate Paul. Paxton could be barred from running for future office if senators sustain the articles of impeachment sent by the House.
Trump, the leading candidate for the Republican nomination for president, is no stranger to impeachment proceedings. In his post on Truth Social late Wednesday, he blamed “establishment RINOS” for trying to undo the will of voters and called Paxton’s impeachment “shameful.”
“Who would replace Paxton, one of the TOUGHEST & BEST Attorney Generals in the Country? Could it be a Democrat, or even worse, a RINO? The voters have decided who they want! Democrats are feeling very good right now as they watch, as usual, the Republicans fight & eat away at each other. It’s a SAD day in the Great State of Texas!”
Paxton has been a top ally of Trump and earned his endorsement in his reelection in 2022. Paxton won that race with 53.4% of votes.
Paxton spoke at the Jan. 6, 2021, rally in Washington and filed a lawsuit challenging the 2020 election results in four battleground states won by President Joe Biden. The Supreme Court declined to take up the case.
Like Trump, Paxton and his team have suggested the Texas proceedings are politically motivated.
“I’m happy to have the support of President Donald J. Trump in my fight,” Paxton wrote Thursday in a fundraising message on X, formerly Twitter. “I need your help today to finish this week strong. Please chip in today!”
Some witnesses in the trial have been asked about their politics, including whether they are “RINO,” or Republican in Name Only, which is used as an insult for those within the GOP deemed not conservative enough.
“I’ve been called a lot of four-letter words. That’s not one,” testified Austin Kinghorn, associate deputy for legal counsel in Attorney General’s Office, on the stand Thursday.
Kinghorn was among four current employees in the office that testified as of the afternoon. Others were Justin Gordon, who oversees the open records division, and Henry De La Garza, the human resources director. Grant Dorfman, deputy first assistant attorney general, was on the stand around 5 p.m.
Chris Hilton, one of Paxton’s attorneys, had Kinghorn assess the impeachment articles. Paxton’s team has maintained there’s not enough evidence to sustain the charges.
Among the lines of questioning, Kinghorn was asked about a report that the Attorney General’s Office issued related to the whisleblowers. One of the impeachment articles calls the investigation a “sham” and says the report contains “false or misleading” statements defending Paxton.
Kinghorn said he’d reviewed the document two to three times and was asked to give feedback.
Hilton asked if Kinghorn was ever directed by anyone to make sure the report was a “sham” or contained inaccurate information. Kinghorn said he wasn’t. If he had, Kinghorn said, he would have raised the issue had he seen any false or misleading content.
Hilton later pressed if Kinghorn has personal knowledge of a “vast criminal conspiracy” that involves the misuse of the office’s resources.
“I have no such knowledge,” Kinghorn said, later adding he would have left the office if he ever saw anything unethical or illegal.
“I’m proud of what we do, and I’m proud to serve General Paxton,” he said.
During cross examination, Erin Epley, one of the attorneys for the impeachment managers, asked Kinghorn who his client is in the Attorney General’s Office.
Kinghorn replied that his client is the attorney general.
“Would you believe me if I told you that when you work for the Office of the Attorney General, you work under his authority and for him, but your client is and only ever is the state of Texas,” Epley said.
Paxton’s lawyers successfully objected.
Much of the afternoon’s testimony dove into the lawsuit against the Attorney General’s Office brought by the whistleblowers. A settlement in that suit for more than $3 million in taxpayer dollars, which has not been paid out according to Kinghorn, prompted the House investigation into Paxton.
De La Garza, the HR director, testified that the firings of four whistleblowers were justified. They had gone to law enforcement and later sued the office for retaliation. He noted violations of office policy that warranted the terminations.
“Did Ken Paxton ever indicate expressly or implicitly that these former staffers needed to be fired because they made a report to law enforcement?” asked Amy Hilton, one of Paxton’s lawyers.
“Not to my knowledge,” De La Garza said.
This story was originally published September 14, 2023 at 9:38 AM.
